9 Gadgets Every Dad Should Keep Near By + WIN an iPhone 6s or Samsung S6

Getting through a day with the kids, presents a whole host of potential hazards, difficulties and challenges. Really, the main focus for any parent is to simply survive the day without any blood, sweat and tears. Or rather, without MUCH blood, sweat or tears. Anything more than that is a bonus!

There are obviously practical things we can do to make the day easier. For example, making sure you have a spare nappy & change of clothes near by at all times. But on top of these kind of very practical tips, there are a number of gadgets that can be the difference between stress or no stress.

Just so you know, this list wasn’t just plucked out of thin air by myself, but actually from the horses (dads) mouth itself. Well, 2,000 of them actually. We asked our network of dads to let us know their must-have gadgets. So here you have it:

The definitive guide, containing the essential 10 gadgets every dad should keep near by:

iPhone/iPad

Most parents like to think that they limit screen time of the kids. And many do. And rightly so. I for one, limit screen time for Ted. But, there are those moments when you just need 5 minutes to draw breath, re-group and assess the damage. And an iPhone or iPad or equivalent, provide just that. They are also the perfect way to capture every new facial expression, achievement, word on camera.

Perfect Prep machine from Tommee Tippee

The Tommee Tippee Perfect Prep machine is basically a machine that makes up a bottle of milk ‘perfectly’ for you. It saves time, energy and effort. 3 vital things you need to conserve as a parent. A fabulous gadget and a life-saver during the night feeds.

Slow cooker

Parenting is all about being efficient. A slow cooker’s ability to chug away in the background, allowing you to change nappies, tread on loose Duplo bricks, scrub the pencil off the wall and shut the stair gate, is priceless. And then at the end of it all, you have dinner ready to eat. A dad’s dream.

Baby ‘shusher’

The hours I have spent leaning over Ted’s cot ‘shushing!’ And now I’ve found out that there’s a ‘shushing’ machine! This is a must have gadget for any dad with a baby. You might think that the simple ‘shh’ is easy enough but 5000 or them at 3am and you’ll be wishing you’d bought this machine. You can also download an App that allows you to record your own ‘shh’ and play it on repeat. Thank the lord!

Everywhere we go, we have a camera; our phones. And with our little ones, all we want to do is take photo’s so we have memories to cry over when they’re big and grumpy whilst wishing they were little again. Our phones are precious and so when I discovered the Meem memory cable, I was instantly attracted to it. Not only does it charge your phone, but each time it backs it up, creating a mirror of whatever is on your phone. You can also use Meem to restore your phone should it get damaged or lost. With Ted’s crafty little fingers touching everything, it’s only a matter of time before I will need to restore my phone! This is a great little gadget that I will be using for the foreseeable future; those memories that live on my phone are far too treasured to lose.

You can also get your hand on a Meem Memory Cable before it hits the shops, and at 30% off by supporting their kickstarter campaign. The details are here.

Meem are giving away an iPhone 6s or Samsung Galaxy S6 at the moment as well! Enter here! But don’t forget that you can get your own Meem Cable to go with your new phone at 30% off by supporting their kickstarter!

6. Gaffer tape

Not for the kids… Obviously. *ahem. Is this even a gadget? Well either way, every dad needs to keep a roll of it near by, so it’s made the list.

7. Ear defenders

I guess this item comes with a warning. You can’t wear them when you’re in the house with just your kids. You can’t wear them at night because your wife could get, well, ‘touchy.’ (That was diplomatic wasn’t it?!) But I’m sure you’ll find a time. At some point. To put them on and enjoy the sound of nothing.

8. Coffee machine

Just to get you through till 9am. Assuming you’re like me and up at 5:30am. Then you’ll need another one to get you through until 12 noon. And another to go until 3pm and then another until 5pm and finally… You can crack open the beer or wine at 7pm when they’ve ‘gone down.’

9. NutriBullet

Because blending is a very quick, easy way of tricking your children into eating fruit and vegetables. Ted falls for it every time. Plus you can start to lose your ‘dadbod’ by getting your diet under control with a smoothie!

With these 9 items, you can’t go wrong. You’ll be able to get through any day with any child. Have we missed off anything though? Maybe you have a gadget that isn’t on the list? Well, leave a comment and we’ll add it on. :)

Ok, in case you missed it…in order to be in with the chance of winning an iPhone or Android phone, all you have to do is fill out this little form. Good luck!

We have the perfect prep and swear by it! We recommend it to anyone looking to bottle feed! SO easy and much better than trying to judge temperature. We have definitely helped in the Tommee Tippee sales for this.

Spearheaded by Al Ferguson, The Dad Network combines a personal blog with an ever-growing community of dads. Created as a personal outlet for Al Ferguson following a devastating miscarriage on his wedding day, The Dad Network has gone on to provide support to thousands of dads across the world.